Familiar face takes over at Glenbard West

Peter Monaghan to become principal in July

January 30, 2013|By Krystyna Slivinski, Special to the Tribune

At around half past 5 a.m., Peter Monaghan, recently tapped as Glenbard West High School's principal effective in July, heads over to the school's gym, coffee in hand, to shoot hoops with teachers and staff or as they fondly refer to themselves, "the old man basketball league."

Monaghan, who just turned 50, and currently serves as the school's assistant principal for student services, says his plan is to stay visible whether it's playing basketball with his staff, meeting parents at community or school-sponsored events or simply greeting students as they walk through the doors.

That will be only one of his challenges in the school with about2,300 students and a long list of expectations from school safety to student achievement to meeting the needs of minorities.

"I feel I had a number of experiences that speak to leadership, but I would be lying if I told you I wasn't nervous about being principal of Glenbard West," Monaghan said.

Officials expect his transition to be seamless since he's been at the school since 1995. He started out as an English teacher at Proviso East High School in Maywood before taking on administrative roles at Glenbard West, where he also served as dean and assistant dean.

He is a longtime resident of Oak Park, has a daughter who is a freshman in college and a son who is in high school. If he's not cooking, according to his wife, he takes on home improvement projects.

"Integrity is very important to him," said Rebecca Monaghan, his wife of 20 years.

In his current role, he spends a lot of time working with students through the President's Council, organizing student awards events, working with Boosters and CARES club members to encourage parents to get involved at the school. He also works with the guidance counselors.

"You can just tell there's a lot of wisdom and knowledge there," said David Larson, superintendent of Glenbard Township High School District 87 in Glen Ellyn.

While the school benefits from having community support and parental involvement in everything from fundraising to athletic events, the face of Glenbard West High School, located in affluent Glen Ellyn, has changed over the years. When Monaghan arrived, the number of students from low income families was about 5 percent. Today, it's up to 18 percent. The number of families from diverse backgrounds also has grown.

"We are like a lot of schools where there is that struggle and we need to cast a wider net," said Monaghan, about reaching those students and parents that can fall through the cracks.

Part of that may come by way of how Monaghan decides to communicate with parents and students. For now, Monaghan doesn't tweet, rarely posts on his Facebook account and limits his texting to family and staff. He's available by email and telephone, but he plans on giving the issue more thought to make sure he and his staff are keeping up with his students when it comes to getting information out.

He also plans on focusing on his staff. Teachers are under more scrutiny due to new state requirements for their evaluations.